Toimintaperustainen

Toimintaperustainen is a Finnish term used to describe an approach in which actions, tasks, and real-world contexts form the basis for planning, learning, or service delivery. The core idea is that knowledge and competencies are best developed through concrete activities and reflection on those activities, rather than through abstract theory alone. The word combines toiminta (action, activity) with perusteinen (based on, founded on).

In education, toimintaperustainen is closely related to experiential, project-based, and learning-by-doing approaches. Curricula designed with this principle emphasize authentic tasks, collaboration, problem solving, and iterative refinement. Assessment tends to focus on observable demonstrations, portfolios, and performance in real or simulated contexts rather than solely on examinations.

In other fields, such as social services, rehabilitation, and organizational development, toimintaperustainen guides interventions and design principles that start from the client’s or user’s actual activities and goals. Plans are task- or outcome-oriented, with steps that can be enacted, evaluated, and adjusted in practice. This orientation aims to increase relevance, motivation, and transfer of learning or skills to everyday life.

Implementation considerations include ensuring access to appropriate contexts and materials, balancing action with necessary theoretical grounding, and aligning activities with overarching objectives. Potential challenges are resource demands, the need for skilled facilitation, and the risk of prioritizing tasks over foundational knowledge.

See also: experiential learning, project-based learning, action-oriented approaches.